GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Despite falling to the 10th-ranked Florida Gators, the 34th-ranked LSU men’s tennis team maintained a strong presence on courts one and four in singles on Friday at the Ring Tennis Complex.
After losing the doubles point, the Tigers were never able to fully recuperate, but both senior Michael Venus and freshman Neal Skupski were able to remain a formidable force in singles.
“Florida’s doubles point was strong and set the tone for the match,” LSU head coach Jeff Brown said. “With their strength in singles, it’s hard to get four points. Both Neal and Michael had good singles matches, but we will need to put more together against South Carolina.”
Eighth-ranked Venus tallied his fifth-straight win over a nationally-ranked opponent in the match against the Gators. The 6-3 Orlando, Fla. native overcame No. 27 Carlos Cueto with a straight-set victory, 6-4, 6-2.
Skupski marked his fourth-straight victory against Florida’s Joey Burkhardt in a three-set match. Skupski posted a quick 6-2 mark in the first set, but Burkhardt retaliated by taking the second set, 6-4. In a close third set, the LSU freshman showed resiliency as he narrowly edged out Burkhardt by 7-5 mark.
Venus leads the Tigers in singles victories with a 9-5 record, and Skupski comes in close second at 8-6 as the Tigers prepare to take on their next Southeastern Conference opponent in 17th-ranked South Carolina on Sunday.
LSU (6-9, 1-6 SEC) faces South Carolina in a noon CDT match at the Sam Daniels to complete SEC competition on the road. The Tigers return to Baton Rouge for their final three conference matches beginning April 10 with a 1 p.m. match against Ole Miss.
#10 Florida 5, #34 LSU 2
Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex
April 3, 2009
Singles
1. #6 Michael Venus (LSU) def. #27 Carlos Cueto (UF), 6-4, 6-2
2. #28 Alex Lacroix (UF) def. James Cluskey (LSU), 6-1, 7-6 (7-4)
3. Antoine Benneteau (UF) def. Sebastian Carlsson (LSU), 7-5, 6-0
4. Neal Skupski (LSU) def. Joey Burkhardt (UF), 6-2, 4-6, 7-5
5. Johnny Hamui (UF) def. Julien Gauthier (LSU), 7-5, 6-2
6. Jeff Dadamo (UF) def. Mark Bowtell (LSU), 6-3, 6-0
Doubles
1. #17 Benneteau/Burkhardt (UF) def. #8 Skupski/Venus (LSU), 8-4
2. Dadamo/Hamui (UF) def. Carlsson/Gauthier (LSU), 8-5
3. Cueto/Lacroix (UF) def. Cluskey/Tragardh (LSU), 8-4
Order of Finish: Doubles ? 3, 2, 1 Singles ? 6, 3, 1, 2, 5, 4